Wednesday, September 08, 2004

Have you seen this painting?

The Scream, one of the world's most recognizable artworks, was stolen from a Norwegian museum last month. Two armed, masked thieves pulled a version of Norwegian expressionist Edvard Munch's most famous work and a version of his lesser known Madonna from the walls of Oslo's Munch Museum during a brazen morning raid. Although thieves threatened museum employees with a handgun and some museum visitors feared they were being attacked by terrorists, no injuries were reported. The Scream is noted for its opened-mouthed man grabbing both sides of his head, a look that portrays fear, desperation and anxiety. After World War II, perhaps no other artwork mirrored the alienation and isolation of modern-day life. Munch, who died in 1944 at 81, is credited with pioneering the expressionist movement. He was tormented by early family deaths and broken relationships, and most of his works depict themes of sickness, death, anxiety and love. He conceived the idea for The Scream after a bout of heavy drinking as he was walking in the hills above Oslo. Beginning in 1893, Munch made four versions on paper and canvas. Auction houses and Norwegian curators estimated the value of this version at up to $74.5 million. USAToday article on other famous artwork stolen in recent years

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